by Vaughn Pfeffer, QB, New England Patriots Wheelchair Football
One of the hardest parts of going through a life-changing injury like paralysis is facing the fact that some of the things you loved to do just won’t be possible anymore. For a 34-year-old newly injured person like me at the time, sports and staying active was the first thing that came to mind. What is life going to be like when I can’t use my legs to run my 20 miles per week? How can I keep friendships flourishing when I’m no longer able to join my beloved men’s league basketball teams? Ah man, I’m going to miss those games, the camaraderie, and the countless hours of texting and talking to teammates about practices and games. Life just won’t be the same.
For background, my injury happened on what started as a typical Tuesday for me. As a reprieve from work calls, meetings, and scouring LinkedIn for countless hours as a headhunter, I left my couch and headed to the gym for a quick workout. Life was great at the time. Just two weeks prior I became engaged to my longtime girlfriend, Ari. Work was keeping me busy as a recruiter, and I had my eyes set on hitting my first contest which would have sent Ari and I to Cancun for a week! I had a lot to feel good about when I walked into the gym that day. Little did I know I wouldn’t walk out. After a short warmup on the treadmill, I made my way to the weight floor where I would collapse due to an aortic dissection which led to a spinal cord stroke.
I vividly remember my first few days at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital where I was lucky enough to be admitted to after a two week stay in the ICU. A common question I was asked over and over by nurses, therapists, and doctors was “what do you like to do for fun?”. I struggled so much with this question because all I could think of was activities that involved my legs. It was the truth! I was a 4-sport athlete in high school, I still played on adult league basketball teams, I chose to walk to and from the train stop rather than wait for the bus even though it was almost 3 miles, and since the beginning of Covid I started logging my running mileage on my refrigerator, shooting for more miles this week than the last. “I like to walk” was my usual response, but I didn’t mean it in a snarky way at all.
Some things just happen by chance. And that’s how I got involved with football. Two years post-injury I started playing pick-up wheelchair basketball with a great group of guys I just happened to meet out of the blue. Twice a week I would make the 45-minute drive to join them at the gym and get great workouts in. The return of competition was what I needed and what I looked forward to each week. After about 4 months of working out with the guys, they brought up playing football and invited me to try out for the New England Patriots Wheelchair Football team sponsored by Adaptive Sports New England. I’m so glad they did.
The first day of tryouts was a rainy spring day at a Wheaton College athletic facility in Norton, MA. I didn’t know what to expect other than a few familiar faces from basketball. What I got when I rolled in was a sense of brotherhood. Soon-to-be teammates figuring out which position is best for one another, and what each guy’s ability can bring to the team.
After a few weeks of practice, we headed to Chicago for the first New England Patriots Wheelchair Football Team’s tournament as one of the two expansion teams there that weekend. Competing with the guys, our coach and staff is medicine no doctor or therapist could ever prescribe and exactly what I needed. It was an incredible weekend playing 4 games, meeting adaptive athletes from around the country, and bonding with my teammates. We learned a lot about ourselves that weekend. We were the newest team there and we made a few dumb mistakes, but the talent and potential on the field is there.
I will forever be thankful to ASNE, the New England Patriots, the staff, coach, and my teammates for my first traveling experience as part of an adaptive sports team. Every travel and hospitality detail was thoroughly thought out, the energy was always positive, and we had each other’s back every step of the way. My favorite part of the whole trip was getting to know my teammates on a more personal level. Each one of us has a story that makes us unique, but no one is better than the other. Although we didn’t do as well as we wanted to on the field, we got a lot of wins by becoming brothers.
Thank you Adaptive Sports New England for being the vehicle that got my competitive juices flowing again and giving me the opportunity to make lasting friendships!
